This invention relates to an ink-jet printable laminate material having a heat-activatable adhesive layer.
Laminate transfer materials have been available for many years for the decoration of goods. Typically they comprise a polymeric or wax film which is formed on a support. An image is printed on the film and subsequently the film is transferred from the support to a substrate usually by applying pressure or heat to the back of the support, and the support is peeled or otherwise removed from the film after transfer.
FR 2 715 607 B1 describes a method for decorating a substrate with an image which, at first, has been printed on a transfer material. A digital image from a conventional video camera is printed using an ink-jet printer onto the transfer material which comprises a plastic support and a heat sensitive adhesive coating onto which the ink is printed. The printed side of the transfer material is placed in contact with the substrate and heat is applied to activate the coating. The plastic support can be removed once the adhesion between the coating and the substrate is greater than that between the coating and the plastic support. FR 2 715 607 does not disclose the composition of the coating which accepts the printing ink. However, non-heat-sealable coatings are essentially continuous films deposited from a polymer solution in an organic solvent or water, or from a dispersion of a polymer in water with emulsifiers.
WO 98/35840 describes a transfer film for transferring an ink comprising at least one liquid component, the film comprising a porous matrix of particles of a heat activatable adhesive bound together by an absorber, the absorber being at least partly soluble in the liquid component within the porous matrix, and the absorber preferably being within the pores of the porous matrix. The absorber has the double function of binding the matrix of heat activatable adhesive and at least partially absorbing the liquid component of the ink.
The absorber is a water soluble or hydrophilic absorber, i.e. an acrylate copolymer, a cellulose ether and/or a polyvinyl pyrrolidone. However, the printed image on the transfer material of WO 98/35840 shows a grainy appearance.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an improved image laminate material which does not show the above-mentioned disadvantages. The improved printable material shall provide high color densities, even image quality, short drying time and, in particular, good adhesion on the permanent substrate.
Copending U.S. application Ser. No. 09/564,442, filed May 4, 2000, of which this is a continuation-in-part and which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses a transfer material for the ink-jet printing process comprising a support and a heat-activatable polymer layer wherein the polymer of the polymer layer is a mixture of nonionic water soluble polyethylene oxide polymers with the general formula H—[—O—CH2—CH2—]nOH, and wherein the degree of polymerization n is in the range of 1,000 to 200,000. That transfer material does not show the above-mentioned disadvantages and does provide high color densities, even image quality, short drying time and, in particular, good adhesion on the permanent carrier or substrate. However, in that transfer material once the polymer layer with the printing thereon has been applied to the substrate, the support is peeled away.
It is therefore a further object of this invention to provide an improved image laminate material which like the transfer material last described also does not show the above-mentioned disadvantages, does provide improved printable material with high color densities, even image quality, short drying time and, in particular, good adhesion on the permanent carrier or substrate.
It is also an object of this invention to provide an improved image laminate material in which the ink-jet printed material may be adhered to the substrate but the polymer support material may be left adhered to that material as a coating rather than peeled away as in the last mentioned transfer material.